VitaGreta [1867016] —
Original article
Read about some of the best deals ever done in the city, and the worst!
Every once in awhile the forums are graced with an extraordinary story of good fortune, almost always told by the benefactor, and often at the expense of another. Cautionary tales of a mistyped number, mistaken identity, or misplaced trust amid a trade are frequent, and before long, these stories pass into Torn legend, destined to be remembered and retold in forum threads for years to come.
In this article, I thought I'd revisit some of these tales to see how they compare to one another. I was inspired to do this by the recent incident where Chohivzla sold a pair of Sports Sneakers to a friend for $7bn, despite having an offer of $10bn on the table at the time. A few days later, Chohivzla's "friend" flipped the sneakers for $12bn by selling them to MightyGoober, making a healthy $5bn profit in a matter of days.
There are many stories like this of items worth billions which were sold for ridiculously low prices, stories which I hope will both inspire and amuse you. We all hope to one day benefit from such a situation, with the insane luck we witness being bestowed on someone else making these stories more memorable than others. Because one mistake, one mistype can change someones Torn career for good, and whether it is for better or worse depends which side of the story you are on.
ONE MAN'S TRASH
It was the morning of the 28th of May, a day that would soon become pleasantly unusual for KRobert. Our protagonist was completing his usual daily routine of scanning the item market for a bargain when suddenly he happened upon a most intriguing sight.
KRobert noticed that Dual Samurais, typically priced between $1.5bn to $2bn, were not at their usual price on the item market. He realised that a n00b had placed a single pair of Dual Samurais up for sale at $2 million, roughly the same price as a roll of toilet paper.
KRobert quickly bought them, and in a testament to his honesty / desire for self-preservation, he immediately messaged Bogie to check that all was legit.
As the screenshot suggests, it appears that the source of KRobert's fortune was someone else's misfortune, as an unknown player accidentally dumped these expensive dual swords with no way to retrieve them. Lapjdp, then a newbie, now inactive, found the swords during a dump search, but promptly rejected the overtures of lady luck by placing them up for sale at 1% of their true value.
KRobert later resold the Dual Samurais for a handsome $2 billion. The dumper of the swords has never been revealed.
HAZARD PAY
Stories of underpriced Hazmat Suits are relatively common in Torn City. When Jumpingjack9439 was just a few hundred days old he stumbled upon a Hazmat priced at just $2.3 million, despite their value being 1,000 times that. After buying the suit the typo was soon confirmed when Jack received a desperate message from the seller, who offered him a fee to buy it back. Despite what his name may suggest, Jack declined to jump at this offer, so ha(t)z off to a great stroke of luck there!
Pictured: Some bargains are just too good to let go.
But Jumpingjack9439 is not the only one who's caught a radioactive deal hotter than Chernobyl. Just last month, on the 25th of July, another Hazmat was sold for cheap at a price of just $7.6m.
I managed to track down the lucky buyer who spoke to us under the pseudonym of DinnoBunny (yee don’t ask). DB told me that he too was messaged shortly after his discount purchase, but this time there was no begging, just good wishes. The faction leader of the seller congratulated DinnoBunny on a great find and said he was happy to see that a n00b picked up the cheap Hazmat rather than an old, top player.
WELDING PROFITS
Is a victim still a victim if they're $1 billion better off? Perhaps, if that player has been duped by a faction member. Several years ago, a player called Khawasi heard that his factionmate, whose name is unknown, had found a super welding helmet in the city with an armor rating of 37.15!
With his profound trading knowledge, Khawasi knew that the helmet could be worth a couple of billion. He also knew that his factionmate wasn't as clued up on trading as he should be, so Khawasi offered to buy it for $1bn in cash, which the finder agreed to. It always pays to do your research, people.
Back then, Welding Helmets went for half what they do today, but this still represented a good investment for Khawasi. After using it for 6 months, he sold the helmet to someone else for $3bn, only to suffer from late-onset abstinence and buy it back for $3.8bn one year later. Khawasi went on to trade the helmet yet again some time afterwards, as he managed to swap it in a deal including $1bn for a hazmat, which he later sold for $7.5bn.
Overall, this means he managed to turn a $1bn investment into $4.7bn of pure profits. Weld done, Khawasi!
Pictured: A sharp mind understands the potential of things
BLESSING IN DISGUISE, OR AN SE JEOPARDIZED?
When a buyer stumbles upon an absurdly cheap item for sale, the thrill you feel in those moments is incomparable. But soon that feeling turns to panic, as you cross your fingers that the transaction will go through before the seller realises their mistake.
Conversely, there is nothing worse than that sudden dread you experience when you realise you've done goofed - how you react at this moment often determines how your story will play out. BigDooD famously nabbed themselves a skateboard from an anonymous trader's bazaar for $43.5 million. In this instance, neither he nor the seller ever contacted each other about the obvious typo. Perhaps it was the shame of it all, or maybe the seller realised that keeping quiet was their only hope of avoiding forum fame.
Pictured: Relief for you, devastation for the seller.
_Scofield_ decided on a different approach when he accidentally listed three sets of Dumbbells for four dollars back in July. It was his intention to lower their price from $448m to $445, but something clearly went awry, and one lucky buyer bought up the three stat enhancers for a measly $12 some seconds after he had self-hospitalised.
_Scofield_ contacted the buyer and managed to negotiate a price of $1bn for all three dumbbells. He may have been more than $1bn out of pocket as a result of this mistake, but the $300 million he clawed back was certainly better than nothing.
FLIPPIN HELL!
As we've seen already, not all of these trading stories have an unhappy ending for one of the two parties. This is certainly true in the case of the n00b who enabled Realistassassin to make $3.1bn in ten minutes.
Realist noticed that a player with less than $1bn networth was trying to sell a Hazmat Suit in the Item Market. He approached the guy with a $3bn offer only to discover he had already been offered $3.5bn, so Realistassassin knew he had to act fast. He quickly set up a trade with a $3.8bn offer for the Hazmat, a trade which was then accepted.
A few seconds later, Realistassasin contacted JFK, Milk, JFA, Mentos, and some PT factions to see if they wanted to purchase a Hazmat. Within ten minutes, a faction leader offered him $6.9bn, meaning that Realistassasin made a profit at an astonishing $310 million a minute.
Being a n00b, our original seller was likely unaware of which factions might be interested in such an item, so they cannot be said to have lost out here, given that they found the Hazmat in the city. And since faction leaders have better things to do than scour the Item Market for bargains, the buyer wasn't exactly stiffed either, especially as their faction made use of the Hazmat when they were repeatedly Dirty Bombed not long after.
Realistassasin's quick thinking meant that a n00b earned $3.8bn, he nabbed himself $3.1bn, and a member of a Dirty Bombed faction kept themselves safe during a radioactive strike. Things can happen fast in Torn, meaning you too can be 10 minutes away from a billion-dollar deal with a bit of luck and knowledge.
GLOWING WITH EUPHORIA
Our final story happened just this month, and it is definitely one of the biggest bargains in Torn City history. On the 13th of August, -Euphoria- noticed that a player called Decomposer was selling a Dirty Bomb for $40 million. -Euphoria- rubbed their eyes a little to see if the price would return to a more realistic $40bn. It did not, and -Euphoria- experienced a thrill befitting of his name when he pulled the trigger.
As you can see from the tragic screenshot above, the Dirty Bomb in question was a faction bomb owned by MMCP, and would probably had been useful against Vinerri, who they are raiding right now and who recently struck back with a DB of their own. -Euphoria- decided not to return the bomb, and quite rightly posted the incident in the Achievements section of the forums.
Decomposer behaved honourably in the aftermath of their mistake, by first congratulating -Euphoria-, and then paying back the lost DB's value from their own pocket. -Euphoria- later sold it for $35 billion, having acquired a quite legendary bargain that people will talk about many years from now.
THE DUAL TMP MYSTERY
Our final entry in this article is less of a story and more a request for information on an ongoing mystery. Back on the 1st of March 2016, an unknown individual managed to purchase a set of Dual MP5s for $45k, despite their price being somewhere in the billions back then.
Today, the dual weapon market has developed so that prices of $20bn are not uncommon for items of this kind. My search for the $45k buyer has been futile so far, but I wonder if the recent auction of The_Hamster's items might have jogged a few memories over one of the greatest market typo bargains.
Or do you know the answer to this mystery? Or perhaps you have an even better story to share? Feel free to contact VitaGreta with your tantalising Torn Tales.
In this article, I thought I'd revisit some of these tales to see how they compare to one another. I was inspired to do this by the recent incident where Chohivzla sold a pair of Sports Sneakers to a friend for $7bn, despite having an offer of $10bn on the table at the time. A few days later, Chohivzla's "friend" flipped the sneakers for $12bn by selling them to MightyGoober, making a healthy $5bn profit in a matter of days.
There are many stories like this of items worth billions which were sold for ridiculously low prices, stories which I hope will both inspire and amuse you. We all hope to one day benefit from such a situation, with the insane luck we witness being bestowed on someone else making these stories more memorable than others. Because one mistake, one mistype can change someones Torn career for good, and whether it is for better or worse depends which side of the story you are on.
ONE MAN'S TRASH
It was the morning of the 28th of May, a day that would soon become pleasantly unusual for KRobert. Our protagonist was completing his usual daily routine of scanning the item market for a bargain when suddenly he happened upon a most intriguing sight.
KRobert noticed that Dual Samurais, typically priced between $1.5bn to $2bn, were not at their usual price on the item market. He realised that a n00b had placed a single pair of Dual Samurais up for sale at $2 million, roughly the same price as a roll of toilet paper.
KRobert quickly bought them, and in a testament to his honesty / desire for self-preservation, he immediately messaged Bogie to check that all was legit.
As the screenshot suggests, it appears that the source of KRobert's fortune was someone else's misfortune, as an unknown player accidentally dumped these expensive dual swords with no way to retrieve them. Lapjdp, then a newbie, now inactive, found the swords during a dump search, but promptly rejected the overtures of lady luck by placing them up for sale at 1% of their true value.
KRobert later resold the Dual Samurais for a handsome $2 billion. The dumper of the swords has never been revealed.
HAZARD PAY
Stories of underpriced Hazmat Suits are relatively common in Torn City. When Jumpingjack9439 was just a few hundred days old he stumbled upon a Hazmat priced at just $2.3 million, despite their value being 1,000 times that. After buying the suit the typo was soon confirmed when Jack received a desperate message from the seller, who offered him a fee to buy it back. Despite what his name may suggest, Jack declined to jump at this offer, so ha(t)z off to a great stroke of luck there!
Pictured: Some bargains are just too good to let go.
But Jumpingjack9439 is not the only one who's caught a radioactive deal hotter than Chernobyl. Just last month, on the 25th of July, another Hazmat was sold for cheap at a price of just $7.6m.
I managed to track down the lucky buyer who spoke to us under the pseudonym of DinnoBunny (yee don’t ask). DB told me that he too was messaged shortly after his discount purchase, but this time there was no begging, just good wishes. The faction leader of the seller congratulated DinnoBunny on a great find and said he was happy to see that a n00b picked up the cheap Hazmat rather than an old, top player.
WELDING PROFITS
Is a victim still a victim if they're $1 billion better off? Perhaps, if that player has been duped by a faction member. Several years ago, a player called Khawasi heard that his factionmate, whose name is unknown, had found a super welding helmet in the city with an armor rating of 37.15!
With his profound trading knowledge, Khawasi knew that the helmet could be worth a couple of billion. He also knew that his factionmate wasn't as clued up on trading as he should be, so Khawasi offered to buy it for $1bn in cash, which the finder agreed to. It always pays to do your research, people.
Back then, Welding Helmets went for half what they do today, but this still represented a good investment for Khawasi. After using it for 6 months, he sold the helmet to someone else for $3bn, only to suffer from late-onset abstinence and buy it back for $3.8bn one year later. Khawasi went on to trade the helmet yet again some time afterwards, as he managed to swap it in a deal including $1bn for a hazmat, which he later sold for $7.5bn.
Overall, this means he managed to turn a $1bn investment into $4.7bn of pure profits. Weld done, Khawasi!
Pictured: A sharp mind understands the potential of things
BLESSING IN DISGUISE, OR AN SE JEOPARDIZED?
When a buyer stumbles upon an absurdly cheap item for sale, the thrill you feel in those moments is incomparable. But soon that feeling turns to panic, as you cross your fingers that the transaction will go through before the seller realises their mistake.
Conversely, there is nothing worse than that sudden dread you experience when you realise you've done goofed - how you react at this moment often determines how your story will play out. BigDooD famously nabbed themselves a skateboard from an anonymous trader's bazaar for $43.5 million. In this instance, neither he nor the seller ever contacted each other about the obvious typo. Perhaps it was the shame of it all, or maybe the seller realised that keeping quiet was their only hope of avoiding forum fame.
Pictured: Relief for you, devastation for the seller.
_Scofield_ decided on a different approach when he accidentally listed three sets of Dumbbells for four dollars back in July. It was his intention to lower their price from $448m to $445, but something clearly went awry, and one lucky buyer bought up the three stat enhancers for a measly $12 some seconds after he had self-hospitalised.
_Scofield_ contacted the buyer and managed to negotiate a price of $1bn for all three dumbbells. He may have been more than $1bn out of pocket as a result of this mistake, but the $300 million he clawed back was certainly better than nothing.
FLIPPIN HELL!
As we've seen already, not all of these trading stories have an unhappy ending for one of the two parties. This is certainly true in the case of the n00b who enabled Realistassassin to make $3.1bn in ten minutes.
Realist noticed that a player with less than $1bn networth was trying to sell a Hazmat Suit in the Item Market. He approached the guy with a $3bn offer only to discover he had already been offered $3.5bn, so Realistassassin knew he had to act fast. He quickly set up a trade with a $3.8bn offer for the Hazmat, a trade which was then accepted.
A few seconds later, Realistassasin contacted JFK, Milk, JFA, Mentos, and some PT factions to see if they wanted to purchase a Hazmat. Within ten minutes, a faction leader offered him $6.9bn, meaning that Realistassasin made a profit at an astonishing $310 million a minute.
Being a n00b, our original seller was likely unaware of which factions might be interested in such an item, so they cannot be said to have lost out here, given that they found the Hazmat in the city. And since faction leaders have better things to do than scour the Item Market for bargains, the buyer wasn't exactly stiffed either, especially as their faction made use of the Hazmat when they were repeatedly Dirty Bombed not long after.
Realistassasin's quick thinking meant that a n00b earned $3.8bn, he nabbed himself $3.1bn, and a member of a Dirty Bombed faction kept themselves safe during a radioactive strike. Things can happen fast in Torn, meaning you too can be 10 minutes away from a billion-dollar deal with a bit of luck and knowledge.
GLOWING WITH EUPHORIA
Our final story happened just this month, and it is definitely one of the biggest bargains in Torn City history. On the 13th of August, -Euphoria- noticed that a player called Decomposer was selling a Dirty Bomb for $40 million. -Euphoria- rubbed their eyes a little to see if the price would return to a more realistic $40bn. It did not, and -Euphoria- experienced a thrill befitting of his name when he pulled the trigger.
As you can see from the tragic screenshot above, the Dirty Bomb in question was a faction bomb owned by MMCP, and would probably had been useful against Vinerri, who they are raiding right now and who recently struck back with a DB of their own. -Euphoria- decided not to return the bomb, and quite rightly posted the incident in the Achievements section of the forums.
Decomposer behaved honourably in the aftermath of their mistake, by first congratulating -Euphoria-, and then paying back the lost DB's value from their own pocket. -Euphoria- later sold it for $35 billion, having acquired a quite legendary bargain that people will talk about many years from now.
THE DUAL TMP MYSTERY
Our final entry in this article is less of a story and more a request for information on an ongoing mystery. Back on the 1st of March 2016, an unknown individual managed to purchase a set of Dual MP5s for $45k, despite their price being somewhere in the billions back then.
Today, the dual weapon market has developed so that prices of $20bn are not uncommon for items of this kind. My search for the $45k buyer has been futile so far, but I wonder if the recent auction of The_Hamster's items might have jogged a few memories over one of the greatest market typo bargains.
Or do you know the answer to this mystery? Or perhaps you have an even better story to share? Feel free to contact VitaGreta with your tantalising Torn Tales.
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